The Superfly is Superfly!

First impressions (as promised): The Superfly is superfly! I could end the post right here, the title says it all.

The Superfly

I've had the Superfly 3 weeks now and I am amazed at how much it has improved my riding. I can climb at a whole different level than before. Once those big 29" wheels spool up on flats, moderate climbs and descents you can maintain road bike speeds. Today on Marshall Road, I passed 2 road bikers on the Superfly trying to beat an encroaching thunderstorm home. Their shocked, indignant looks as I roared by on my knobby tires was worth a thousand bucks! The Superfly's only real liability is on rocky and loose technical descents. I'm still learning the bike, but my descending has slowly improved. The carbon frame along with low tubeless tire pressures soak up a majority of bumps. 20psi is perfect for technical riding. On most trails if I pick my lines with surgical precision and keep an "active" form, I'm as fast or faster than I was on my old 4" travel Santa Cruz Superlight.

Two Weeks ago Doug and I headed up to Buffalo Creek for the first ride of the season there. Buffalo Creek has smooth, fast single track that carves its way through the high foothills of the Front Range. It snakes through different burn areas of past forest fires treating riders to varied scenery and terrain. Although not technical, it's flowing single track is some of the best in the area. It was the perfect place to get acquainted with the Superfly.

Buff Creek Single Track

After a spirited drive in the M Coupe down windy Pine Valley Road, we started out a different trail head than normal. Doug knows the trails much better than myself so he lead the way. He planned a 20 mile ride with 3 long climbs. On the first climb it was refreshing how light and fast the Superfly felt, even though my knee hurt a bit. At the top of the climb the conifer forest opened up into a recovering burn area. It had been a couple years since the fire and the new growth filled the air with rich smells of spring. Juvenile Columbines and other wildflowers were just breaking ground.

Recovering Burn Area

Columbines and Wildflowers

The trail flowed through the rolling hills along the forest-burn boundary for a couple miles before a three way junction. At the junction there was a strong campfire smell in the air, but when we looked at the map there wasn't a camp ground for miles. I could see smoke just past the junction so we rode over to investigate. We found a huge swath of charred ground with burning hot spots in some areas. I'm not sure if was a controlled burn or wildfire set by lightning the night before, but it was almost out and contained by the road we were on. It made me wonder how many small fires go unnoticed this time of year when the forest is still wet from Spring runoff.

Fresh Burn

Hot Spot

Junction

After the junction our route treated us to a long, fast weaving down hill. I quickly figured out to go fast on the 29er I needed to carve my turns deeper than on a 26" bike. As I gained a feel for the "edge" my confidence and speed improved. It's such a satisfying feeling to carve the Superfly through turns, much more so than my Santa Cruz. Near the bottom of the descent the trail flattened out and I closed the gap behind Doug. I just happened to be looking at his rear tire, about 10 feet back, when it exploded in a spray of mist. The mist was Stan's tubeless tire sealant and the explosion was caused by a 2" gash in the middle of the tread. Dumbfounded, we found the cause to be the remnants of a stick wedged deep in the rim tape of his wheel. We concluded the tire must have been defective as in my 12 years of riding I've never seen anything like it.

Problem

Solution

The problem was that even though he had a spare tube, there was no way it would hold pressure with such a gaping hole in the tire. Doug had duct tape, but it wouldn't stick to the inside of the tire because it was soaked in Stans sealant. I've used dollar bills to fix holes in tires before, but neither one of us had brought any cash out in the woods. As I enjoyed a GU the solution hit me. The wrapper would make a great double layered, water proof bandaid. It worked. Just below us the trail crossed a fire road which was a perfect bail out to Pine Valley Road. The GU wrapper held the entire 8 miles on the pavement back to the car!

8 Miles and Still Holding